Marilyn's Mystery Reads

Returning to the Navajo Nation and spending time with Bernadette Manuelito and Jim Chee is always a delight.  Readers will enjoy their company as they work together to solve both criminal cases and family issues.

The big news on the reservation is the upcoming visit of a federal dignitary.  No one is quite certain who the visitor is, but the Navajo Tribal Police will certainly be involved, and that means Bernie and Jim will play a part.  While they are waiting for more information, other issues arise.

As the novel opens, a teenaged boy is running past a uranium disposal site, a location that is off-limits due to the radioactivity that is still present years after the area was abandoned by a mining company.  Although the area is fenced off, with warning signs on it to keep people away, the boy goes closer and runs through the opening in the fence.  At first he sees only a brown cowboy hat on the ground, but a second look shows him a bruised and bloody face under the hat.

Darleen, Bernie’s younger sister, is studying for her nursing degree and working as a home health aide as well.  One of her clients, Melia Raymond, isn’t home when Darleen makes her scheduled visit, and Mrs. Raymond’s daughter, who lives nearby, doesn’t know where her mother is.  Unbeknown to anyone, Mrs. Raymond and her teenaged grandson Droid are en route to the Best Way Rehabilitation Center in Phoenix, allegedly a center for people with alcohol or drug addictions.  Droid hears about the group a day or two earlier and wants to conquer his drinking problem before it gets totally out of hand.

Mrs. Raymond, however, is suspicious when the van comes to her house to take Droid away.  It almost sounds too good to be true, she thinks, with free lodging, food, and counseling available, but her grandson is adamant about going, so she decides to go with him, signing the form that says she has a drinking problem so that she can keep an eye on Droid.  Thus they both leave home, telling no one where they’re going or for how long.

A phone call comes into the police station about a group called the Citizens United to Save the Planet, or CUSP.  They’re holding a revival meeting on the land belonging to Mr. and Mrs. Yazzee, and although they have permission for the meeting, they are building a sweat lodge explicitly against the couple’s wishes.  Talking to some of the men involved in CUSP, Bernie doesn’t like the answers she’s getting from them and their constant references to their Leader, who receives his directions from The Great Beyond.

Adding to these issues, Bernie and Darleen’s mother continues her decline into dementia, and it’s only due to the assistance of neighbors and friends that the sisters are able to care for her.  But, Bernie wonders, how much longer can she continue on her career path as a police officer and be there for her mother at the same time.  It’s a lot to manage.

Anne Hillerman has written another fascinating mystery set in the Navajo Nation, featuring two of my favorite fictional characters.  You can read more about her at this website.

Check out the complete Marilyn’s Mystery Reads at her website.  In addition to book review posts, there are sections featuring Golden Oldies, Past Masters and Mistresses, and an About Marilyn column that features her opinions about everything to do with mystery novel.

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